The House of Representatives Committee on Public Assets has summoned the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, alongside NPA contractors, over alleged irregularities in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) concessions and lease agreements.

Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Ademorin Kuye, disclosed this in an interview with journalists, stating that many NPA leases, concessionaires and PPP partners are either operating with expired agreements or have contracts due for review this year.

He recalled that in February 2024, the House of Representatives resolved that the Committee on Public Assets should review all concessions, leases, PPP, and joint venture agreements entered into by various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) on behalf of the federation to assess their profitability and continued relevance to the country.

He said as part of the investigation, the committee, empowered by Sections 62(1), 68, and 89 of the Constitution and the 10th National Assembly Standing Order, has written to MDAs, particularly those managing land, buildings, and major facilities under such arrangements with private entities.

Kuye revealed that preliminary findings indicate that some of these agreements are defective and were undertaken without due process.

“To make matters worse, some MDAs lack records of these arrangements. A notable case is the Nigerian Ports Authority, which claims that all its lease and concession agreements, along with PPP details, were lost during the #EndSARS protests in 2020,” he said.

He said many of the NPA leases, concessionaires, and PPP partners are either operating without valid agreements or have contracts up for review this year.

Kuye alleged that some of these entities are avoiding the committee’s inquiries to prevent implicating the NPA.

He further noted that this issue extends beyond the NPA and its partners, as similar irregularities have been observed in other government institutions.

“This deliberate obstruction of the National Assembly’s constitutional mandate to summon and investigate breaches in federal dealings will not be tolerated,” he warned.